Russia to Expand Military Presence Abroad, Cooperate in Fight Against Piracy

The Russian Defense Ministry plans to expand the Russian military presence in several regions of the world, Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu has stated. Negotiations on creating military bases in countries of South-East Asia and Central America are under way. The Voice of Russia have discussed with experts the purposes and prospects of such an expansion, including in the framework of the international fight against piracy.

Currently, negotiations are held with a number of countries, in particular, with Vietnam, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, the Seychelles and Singapore, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said recently. However, it should be clarified that the matter does not concern creating overseas military bases in the usual sense. The Ministry of Defence of Russia was more interested in support facilities for our naval fleet and long-range aviation in remote regions, head of the TASS editorial office of military news, Viktor Litovkin, told the Voice of Russia:

“Russian ships and submarines are now present in the World’s Ocean – in the Atlantic, in Indian and Pacific Oceans, and in the Mediterranean.

Our long-range airplanes fly almost all over the world. They need to be refilled somewhere. Ships also need to replenish their supplies of water and fuel, and their crews need rest. We are not alone in our desire to have bases abroad. The USA has about eighty bases, where they have deployed not only combat service support operators, but entire contingents of the armed forces. We are not going to deploy large contingents far away from Russia.”

Today, there is neither political expediency nor economic justification in the presence of large military contingents of Russia far abroad. On the other hand, siting of support bases in different points of the World Ocean can enhance the effectiveness of our country’s international cooperation in the fight against piracy, RIA Novosti military expert, Konstantin Bogdanov, says:

“Agreements with a group of countries on the use of their port infrastructure for calling, bunkering and refueling of our ships can really simplify forces maneuver between Russian bases on the territory of Russia and their presence in the areas where they solve problems of fighting against piracy, in particular, in the Horn of Africa. If Singapore and the Seychelles give us this opportunity, this will facilitate planning of operations on transferring the forces of the Pacific Fleet.”

Today, from the point of view of experts, the most promising prospect is return of the Russian military to the Vietnamese Cam Ranh base. Last November, the presidents of Russia and Vietnam signed an agreement on creating a joint submarines’ maintenance center there. Besides, there is an international airport in Cam Ranh, which in case of a necessity is able to accommodate airplanes of the Russian Air Forces, including long-range aviation.

Source: Voice of Russia

R.S